Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke will have a disciplinary hearing this week, likely before the Penguins depart for Carolina.
Cooke delivered a vicious shoulder-to-head hit to Bruins star forward Marc Savard in the third period of Sunday’s game. Savard left the ice on a stretcher and was diagnosed with a concussion. According to Bruins head coach Claude Julien, Savard was knocked unconscious momentarily
League sources indicate Cooke will likely receive a suspension in the range of 3-5 games, with a five game suspension a possibility . One source says he’s going to get at least three games,, which is the minimum amount of games Savard will sit (1 week) for after being diagnosed with a suspension.
However, with the way Colin Campbell evaluates, it wouldn’t be a shock if Cooke walks out of this one. You just never know with Campbell.
Cooke who blindsided Savard, felt it was a clean hit. “I just finished my check, It felt like shoulder-to-shoulder, Cooke said.
Bruins head coach Claude Julien was furious after the game and expects Savard to be out of the lineup for a while.
“A guy like that has to be suspended,” Claude Julien said. “That’s the way I see it because it’s an elbow to the head from the blind side. That’s exactly the examples they show of what we’ve got to get out of this game. We have a guy who’s got a concussion. Our best player. He’s going to be out for a while. He was on the ice for a bit. That’s unacceptable.”